Thread

1. anon_cow1111 · 1789859036 · focus · HN ↗

   Personally the first HN algorithm anecdote I really noticed was when the "stop destroying videogames' petition hit the front page a couple years ago. In the first hour it got a modest ~100 votes and comments with some organic discussion, so pretty typical for a good HN post. In the next hour it was dead and buried several hundred posts down.

   I don't want to be a tinfoil hatter here, but I think certain industries have a lot more influence over this site than most people realize.

   1. Capricorn2481 · 1789859436 · focus · HN ↗

      This isn't very satisfying to me, as that ranks pretty low on the list of potentially damaging threads, don't you think? The genesis period of a petition? I see way more alarming stuff on here every day that further disillusions me to the biggest players.

      I don't like Paul Graham, but I don't know if he really gives a shit what's happening on here. HN is not a super influential forum.

      1. user_7832 · 1789861982 · focus · HN ↗

         The thing is, it doesn't even have to be PG/HN doing this. Case in point, look at reddit being astroturfed by every company.

         And also, look how good Graphene OS posts do, and now compare that to Stop Killing Games. These both have a similar overlap (unless you work at Google, both are interests/hobbies), yet GOS almost always hits front page (and rightly so), yet SKG failed to, despite being a Stallman-ian topic.

         1. Capricorn2481 · 1789862592 · focus · HN ↗

            Well I definitely think the site is heavily botted, as it's trivially easy to do so. I was speaking more to moderation.

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